H1N1 sends 4-H youth home from state fair

By Andrew Hatling

An outbreak of the H1N1 virus at the 4-H Complex of the Minnesota State Fair sent 120 youth home Sept. 3.

A large percentage of the youth sent home came from the Arts In group, a youth theater program through 4-H.

This year, the group was performing “Magic,” a performance including music, singing and dancing that promoted the power of individual worth. Arts In typically puts on 3-4 performances a day.

There are more than 90 teens working on this year’s performance. They range from soon-to-be sophomores in high school, to soon-to-be sophomores in college.

The rest of the 4-H participants sent home were from its Ambassadors programs.

On Friday, 17 of the Arts In members were sent home with because they had influenza. When four of those 17 tested positive for the H1N1 strain, which has caused fatalities, the fair decided to sent the rest of the 4-H participants home.

“The 4-Hers are very disappointed with our decision,” said Jerry Hammer, executive vice president of the fair, in a press release, “but we would rather err on the side of caution than to take a chance with the health and well being of these young men and women.”

When the Arts In crew isn’t performing, they spend time in the upper level of the 4-H Complex at the State Fair. There is room for nearly 1,000 youth in this building.

There are more than 6,000 4-H competitors at the state fair this year, although only a small percent of them actually live in the dorms.

The Arts In program arrives the week before the fair opens and stays the entire 12-day run.

“Our commitment is to keep our 4-H youth safe,” said 4-H State Program Leader Dorothy McCargo Freeman. “Minnesota 4-H is very concerned about the health and well-being of its members.”

For more information on the H1N1 virus, visit the Minnesota Department of Health’s web site.

For more information on the 4-H program, visit its site.